]> ms.151 Elsasser (Walter M.) 1904- Papers 1927-1989 Ms. 151 Cynthia H. Requardt Special Collections, The Milton S. Eisenhower Library, The Johns Hopkins University
3400 N. Charles Street Baltimore, MD 21218 USA Phone: (410) 516-8323
Machine-readable finding aid encoded by Diwakar Bhandari Finding aid written in English Elsasser (Walter M.) 1904 Papers 1927-1989 Ms. 151 Special CollectionsThe Milton S. Eisenhower Library The Johns Hopkins University Contact Information Special Collections The Milton S. Eisenhower Library The Johns Hopkins University 3400 North Charles Street Baltimore, MD 21218 (410) 516-8323 Cynthia H. Requardt 1988-1989 Diwakar BHandari

©2003 The Johns Hopkins University

 Descriptive Summary Ms. 151 Elsasser (Walter M.) 1904 Papers 1927-1989 Elsasser, Walter M., 1904 Johns Hopkins University. Special Collections 4 record center boxes (5 linear feet) English Elsasser's papers consist of correspondence, writings and some personal material. They span the period 1927-89 although the manuscript material does not begin until 1955. Although best known for his geophysical work, Elsasser believed his controversial ideas in theoretical biology were what historians would want to study. The papers, therefore, are most complete in theoretical biology. The papers include a small amount of correspondence relating to geophysics, but the largest amount deals with theoretical biology. The remainder of the papers are copies of most of Elsasser's published articles, several of his monographs, and drafts of unpublished writings. Administrative Information Provenance

Dr. Walter M. Elsasser donated the bulk of his papers to Special Collections in May 1985. In December 1989 he added more recent correspondence and writings.

Use Restrictions

Access to the papers is unrestricted.

Permission to publish material from this collection must be requested in writing from the Manuscripts Librarian, Milton S. Eisenhower Library, The Johns Hopkins University, 3400 North Charles Street, Baltimore, Md. 21218.

 Preferred Citation

Walter M. Elsasser Papers Ms. 151 Special Collections Milton S. Eisenhower Library The Johns Hopkins University

Biographical Note

Walter M. Elsasser was born on March 20, 1904 in Mannheim, Germany the son of Moritz and Johanna [Masius] Elsasser. He received his Ph.D. in 1927 from Goettingen where he studied quantum mechanics under Max Born. Elsasser did post-doctoral work at Leyden and Zurich (1927-28) and taught at the Technische Hochschule in Berlin (1928-30) and the University of Frankfort (1930-33). After three years at the Institute Henri Poincare at the Sorbonne (1933-36), Elsasser decided to emigrate to the United States.

His peripatetic teaching career continued with positions at the California Institute of Technology (1936-41), Harvard University's Blue Hill Meteorological Observatory (1941), the University of Pennsylvania (1947-50), the University of Utah (1950-56), Scripps Institute of Oceanography and the University of California, La Jolla (1956-62), Princeton University (1962- 67), the University of Maryland (1967-74), and the Johns Hopkins University (1974-). For a period in the 1940s Elsasser worked outside academia for the Signal Corps Laboratories (1942-44), the National Defense Research Council (1944-45), and RCA Laboratories (1945-47). For more details on these positions see Elsasser's curriculum vitae in Appendix I.

Elsasser's research interests have been as varied as his positions. After training in nuclear physics and doing research on the internal structure of the atomic nucleus, Elsasser turned to the field of geophysics. In this field he analyzed far infrared radiation in the atmosphere. One of his most notable contributions to geophysics was the explanation in the 1940s of the earth's magnetism as a self-generating dynamo in a liquid iron core. By the 1960s Elsasser began to study the earth's mantle and the emerging study of plate-tectonics.

Elsasser closed his professional career with an interest in theoretical biology. He has written articles and several volumes criticizing biologists' theory of reductionism.

Elsasser received many honors and awards including the Research Prize of the German Physical Society (1932), William Bowie Medal (1959) and the John A. Fleming Medal (1971) both of the American Geophysical Union, the C.F. Gauss Medal, the Arthur L. Day Medal of the Geological Society of America, and the National Medal of Science in 1987.

For more information see Elsasser's Memoirs of a Physicist in the Atomic Age (1978) and "My Years in Geophysics" written in 1988. A copy of the former is in the stacks QC16.E58 A35 1978 and the latter is in Series 3.

Description of Series/Container List Series 1: Correspondence Series 1: Correspondence, 1955-1989 3 document boxes Arranged topically, chronologically within topics

Dr. Elsasser sorted his correspondence topically and arranged it chronologically within the topics. This arrangement has been retained. The topics and date ranges are: personal (1963-68, 1988), travel (1963-66), journals and books (1960-85), geophysics (1959-70), and biology (1955-89). There are also three folders of correspondence he labeled "to be sorted" (1958- 65).These topical categories are loose at best, so the researcher should consult all of the correspondence for relevant information.

The correspondence has not been analyzed, but two of the most frequent correspondents are Harry Rubin, Professor of Molecular Biology at the University of California, Berkeley (1981-89) and Frederick Seitz of the Rockefeller University (1980-89), and Egon Orowan, 1975-1987.

Box 1 Series 1 Contents Box 1 Series 1 Biology, 23 folders, 1955-1989, Box 2 Series 1 Correspondence Box 2 Series 1 Biology-Rubin, Harry, 3 folders 1981-1989 Box 2 Series 1 Biology-Seitz, Frederick, 1 folder, 1980-1989 Box 2 Series 1 Contracts and grants, 4 folders, 1963; 1968-1978 Box 2 Series 1 Contracts and grants, Naval Research, 1964-1968 Box 2 Series 1 Correspondence (general), 4 folders, 1959-1963 Box 2 Series 1 Correspondence (general), 1 folder, 1973 Box 2 Series 1 Correspondence (general), 1980-1986 Box 2 Series 1 Fluid dynamics, 3 folders, 1960-1982 Box 2 Series 1 Fluid dynamics-American Physical Society, 2 folders, 1958-1960 Box 2 Series 1 Geophysics, 14 folders, 1959-1988 Box 3 Series 1 Correspondence Box 3 Series 1 Journals and books, 3 folders, 1960-1985 Box 3 Series 1 Journals and books-Bernier, Rejane (Orbis Publishing), 1 folder, 1988-1989 Box 3 Series 1 National Academy of Sciences, 4 folders, 1957-1962; 1975-1979; 1984 Box 3 Series 1 Personal, 4 folders, 1963-1991 Box 3 Series 1 Personal-Egon Orowan, 2 folders, 1975-1987 Box 3 Series 1 Philosophy,1 folder, 1974-1975 Box 3 Series 1 Theoretical Biology, 3 folders, 1971-1973 Box 3 Series 1 Travel, 1963-1984 Box 3 Series 1 to be sorted, 3 folders, Series 2: Class Notes Series 2: Class Notes, n.d. 2 Folders

This series consists of the lecture notes and problem sets for Elsasser's class in "Theoretical Problems of Earth Science".

 Box 3 Series 2 Correspondence Box 3 Series 2 Theoretical Concepts of Earth Science, Lecture Notes, Box 3 Series 2 Theoretical Concepts of Earth Science, Problem Sets, Series 3: Writings Series 3: Writings, 1927-1989 .75 record center box

The writings consist of reprints of Elsasser's articles, copies of some, but not all of his monographs, and drafts of articles most of which were unpublished. A complete bibliography of his writings is in Appendix I. Elsasser arranged the reprints into three topics: atomic and nuclear physics (1927-35), geophysics (1938-71) and theoretical biology (1937-89). This arrangement has been retained. The monographs date from 1958 to 1987 and deal with biology. The manuscript drafts are arranged chronologically. See the container list for a complete list.

Box 4 Series 3: Writings Contents Box 4 Series 3: Writings Reprints: atomic and nuclear physics, 1927-1935 Box 4 Series 3: Writings radiation , 1942 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Geophysics, 1938-1971 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Biology, 1937,1951-84 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "The Need for Natural Philosophy", Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "Heterogeneity: Formal Aspects of Life Science", Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "The Mathematical Representation of Individuality", Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "The Logic of Life Science", Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "Life and Statistical Physics", Box 4 Series 3: Writings Draft: "Max Born's Critique of Mechanical Prediction and Theoretical Biology", 1963 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Draft: "A causal Phenomena in Physics and Biology: A Case for Reconstruction", 1969 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Draft: "A Pluralistic Biology and Other Essays", 1972 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Draft: "Physics and the Foundations of Biology: Report on an Interdisciplinary Venture", 1980's Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "The Creative Organism: Toward a Holistic Theory of Organic Life", 1980's Box 4 Series 3: Writings Draft: "Holism: A New Kind of Science", 1980 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "Creativity and Memory as Biological Functions", 1980 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "From Quantum Mechanics to a New Life Science", 1980's Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drarfts: "Biological Counterpart to Computers' Memory Devices", 1980's Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts" A Scientific Epistemology of Living Organisms", 1981 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "Bergson's Notion of Memory Applied to Science", 1984 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "Summary of a Holistic Biological Theory", 1984 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "A Theory of Biological Memory", 1985 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "Creativity as a Property of Molecular Systems", 1986 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "Studies in Biophilosopy", 1966? Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "In Quest of Theoretical Biology", 1981 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "Biological Theory", 1981 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "Elements of Theoretical Biology", Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "The Science of Creativity: A Primer of Theoretical Biology", 1980's Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "The Science of Creativity: A Program of Theoretical Biology", 1980 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "Creativity as a Property of Molecular Systems", 1986 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "Imanishi's Concept of Biological Autonomy", 1988 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "Interpretation of Generalized Complimentarity", 1988 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "Physics and Biology Related to Rationalism", 1988 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "A Proposal Concerning Information Transfer and Memory", 1988 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "Organismic Biology as a Problem of Logic", 1989 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "A Heterogeneous Logic for Biology", 1989 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Drafts: "Perspective", Preface for 'The Scientific Theory of Organisms', 1989 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Monographs: 'The Physical Foundation of Biology ', 1958 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Monographs: 'Atom and Organism' , 1966 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Monographs: 'Atome and Organisme', 1966 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Monographs: 'Atomo y Organismo', 1966 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Monographs: 'Biological Theory on a Holistic Basis ', 1982 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Monographs: 'Biological Theory on a Holistic Basis (second version)', 1982 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Monographs: 'The Chief Abstractions of Biology ' , 1975 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Monographs: 'Holism: A New Kind of Science ', 1984 Box 4 Series 3: Writings Monographs: 'The Natural Philosophy of Holism', 1987 Series : Series 4: Personal Series : Series 4: Personal, 1971-1989 .25 record center boxes

This series consists of articles and other information about Elsasser. It includes his curriculum vitae and bibliography as well as awards he received, articles about him and photographs. There is also a copy of "My Years in Geophysics" written in 1988 for the Center for the History of Physics. Letters friends and colleagues wrote to Elsasser on his eightieth birthday were collected and entitled "An Appreciation of Walter Elsasser." A copy is in this series.

Box Contents Box 4: Series 4: Personal "An Appreciation of Walter Elsasser", Box 4: Series 4: Personal "My Years in Geophysics", Box 4: Series 4: Personal "Articles about Walter Elsasser", Box 4: Series 4: Personal Curriculum Vitae, Box 4: Series 4: Personal Bibliography, Box 4: Series 4: Personal Awards, Box 4: Series 4: Personal Photographs, Box 4: Series 4: Personal Mailing Lists, Box 4: Series 4: Personal Genealogical Information,